Google Inc (GOOG): Can Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (005930) Create the Web Browser of the Future?

Completely ditching Android would be a very big and difficult step for Samsung. For one thing, the company’s smartphone users are already used to the platform. Although Samsung has built out some of its own features within the OS, starting its own system may be easier said than done.

Take, for example, Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK)‘s move to the Windows Phone OS. Nokia wasn’t using Android for its platform before it moved to Windows Phone, but it is trying to sell phones that aren’t running on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)‘s iOS or Android — which have a combined smartphone global market share of 91% right now.

In China, where Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) once held 50% of the mobile market share, it now holds just 1% because of Android and iOS. Samsung doesn’t want to walk down the same road as Nokia, so it needs to make its transition from Android slowly if it wants to do it successfully.

With Samsung’s browser partnership with Mozilla, the company can slowly test the waters of moving away from Android without jeopardizing its current place in the mobile world. Consumers should keep an eye out for how this new relationship grows and how much Samsung gets involved in building the browser engine. If the company launches a Mozilla-based mobile browser on its devices in the near future, then it may mean the company is breaking free from Google’s grip — which would be quite a feat.

The article Can Samsung Create the Web Browser of the Future? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Chris Neiger has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Apple and Google.

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